Chapter 37: Jack

Caelan didn’t answer immediately. He just stared at her, their eyes remained locked on each other.

Eveline’s face was much closer to his now, close enough that Caelan could clearly see the slight smile forming on her lips. For some reason, he suddenly found it difficult to look anywhere else.

"Yeah," Caelan eventually admitted.

Eveline just continued staring at him.

Why the fuck am I getting shy now? What am I? A teenage boy? Caelan could feel his face slowly becoming warmer.

They had already done this before. There shouldn’t be anything awkward about it anymore. But the longer Eveline stared at him without saying anything, the more conscious he became of the distance between them.

"What?" Caelan’s forehead creased, but it only made Eveline’s smile grow wider.

"Nothing."

"Then why are you looking at me like that?"

A small chuckle escaped from her lips. Before Caelan could question her again, Eveline suddenly leaned forward. Her lips gently pressed against his.

Caelan’s eyes widened. It was only a small peck, barely lasting for a few seconds, but it was enough to completely empty his mind.

"There." Eveline slowly pulled away.

"What there?" Caelan blinked.

"Mhm." She just shrugged her shoulder, looking far too pleased with herself.

Caelan stared at her lips for a moment before looking back into her eyes. Then, gathering whatever little strength he had left, he quickly leaned toward her.

Eveline didn’t move away. In fact, she just closed her eyes, readying for it. However, before Caelan could even cross the distance.

*CLICK!

The door suddenly opened.

"My Lord, I have come to report that..." A voice echoed against the four corner of the rooms.

The abrupt sound made Caelan and Eveline freeze. The man standing at the doorway froze too.

The member of the Night stood completely still with one hand holding the door open. His entire body was covered in the same dark clothing Caelan remembered from the forest, although his face was no longer covered.

"My apologies, my Lord." The Night member immediately lowered his gaze before he took one step backward.

"I will return at a more appropriate time."

"Wait!" The moment Caelan said that, the man immediately stopped before he could cross the door.

Caelan didn’t know when he would see another member of the Night again, and he definitely wasn’t going to let this one disappear before he could finally get some answers.

"Stay. I need to talk to you."

"As you command, my Lord." The man paused before stepping back inside.

Caelan still felt weird hearing that.

Beside him, Eveline quickly stepped backward from the bed. The moment Caelan looked toward her, he noticed that her cheeks were now all red.

"I..." Eveline awkwardly smiled. "I should probably leave first."

"You don’t have to."

"No, it’s fine." She was already walking toward the door. "You two probably have important things to talk about."

Caelan stared at her, a small chuckle escaping from her lips.

Was she seriously running away because she was embarrassed?

"I’ll be back after."

Before Caelan could say anything else, Eveline quickly walked past the man and left the room.

"..." Caelan stared at it for a few seconds. He could still feel the warmth of her lips against his.

"Hah..." And they didn’t even get to finish what they were about to do.

So fucking close. Caelan shook his head and sighed. He slowly turned his attention toward the other person in the room.

The man remained standing near the door as if nothing had happened. Thankfully, there wasn’t even a hint of amusement on his face. Though Caelan couldn’t tell if the man genuinely didn’t care or was simply very good at hiding it.

Now that Caelan could finally see him properly without a mask covering half his face, the man looked to be somewhere in his early thirties.

He had short dark brown hair that was neatly swept back and a sharp face with a thin scar running from the bottom of his left cheek toward his jaw. His eyes were dark gray that looked difficult to read.

Unlike most of the members Caelan had seen in the forest, there was something much more about him. He wasn’t doing anything threatening, but Caelan could immediately tell that this man wasn’t some ordinary member.

"So..." Caelan finally spoke. "Who are you?"

The man immediately placed one hand over his chest before lowering his head.

"My name is Jack, my Lord."

"Jack..."

"I currently serve as the acting leader of the Night’s First Branch."

"Acting leader?" Caelan raised an eyebrow.

"Yes, my Lord." Jack lifted his head.

"The Night is currently divided into three branches. The First Branch operates primarily within the capital and its surrounding territories. As its acting leader, I oversee our members stationed here, manage incoming information, and distribute assignments under your command."

Caelan stared at him for a moment before nodding.

"Why acting leader? Where’s the actual leader?"

Jack became silent for a moment before raising his hand to point at Caelan.

"That’s your position, my lord. I just took the role while you were unconscious."

"Oh..." Caelan awkwardly looked away.

Right... He released a deep breath before looking at him again.

"Alright, Jack." Caelan stared at him for a moment before leaning his head back against the pillow.

"Keep the position for now."

"My Lord?" Jack’s expression finally changed.

"You heard me." Caelan glanced at the bandages covering his body. "I’m obviously not in any condition to start managing an entire organization right now. So until I’ve recovered, continue doing whatever you’ve been doing."

Jack seemed genuinely surprised by his words.

"Are you certain, my Lord?"

"Yeah."

Caelan didn’t even need to think about it. There was no way he was going to do that immediately when he didn’t even know them. Besides, Jack clearly knew more about the organization than he did.

Why would Caelan replace someone who already knew what he was doing?

"I trust that you know how to handle things better than me right now," Caelan added.

"I understand. I will continue overseeing the First Branch until you decide otherwise." Jack bowed his head in agreement.

"Good." Caelan was honestly relieved that the man didn’t argue.

"But there’s one thing."

"Anything, my Lord." Jack’s eyes landed on him once again.

"Tell me everything I need to know about the Night."